How Do Personal Injury Lawyers Typically Charge?

March 31, 2022 – Paul Hammack

How Personal Injury Lawyers Charge | Hammack Law | (864) 326 - 3333 | Greenville, SC

Personal Injury Lawyer in Greenville, SC Explains How Much Personal Injury Lawyers Typically Charge

If you have been hurt in an accident, you may be entitled to financial compensation for your pain and suffering, lost wages, medical bills, and other damages. However, no one wants to be hurt again right after an accident by a personal injury lawyer’s steep fees. Are you worried that a lawyer’s fees will cost you the other arm or leg not already harmed in the accident?

No need to worry! Our personal injury lawyers at the Hammack Law Firm will let you keep all of your undamaged limbs. We’ll also help you get the financial compensation you need to cover fixing the broken ones.

We have a proven track record of success fighting back against some of the largest insurance carriers and defense law firms in South Carolina, recovering compensation in settlements, verdicts, arbitration awards, and other types of recoveries. Learn more about how we can help you during a FREE consultation by calling us today. That’s right—free! No cost to learn more about how we can help you, your loved one, or to just ensure a better life for your pets.

How Do Personal Injury Lawyers Get Paid?

Most people hurt in a car accident, slip and fall incident, dog bite, zombie attack, or any other type of accident may be worried about being able to afford a lawyer. We get it. The truth is, most people can’t afford lawyers. But fortunately, the American Bar Association has enacted Rules of Professional Conduct, allowing personal injury lawyers to accept cases on a contingency basis under Rule 1.5 (c).

Similarly, the South Carolina Judicial Branch has also adopted Rule 1.5 (c) to allow for contingency fee agreements in certain cases. This allows for certain advantages for clients hurt in a car wreck or other accident.

What is a Contingency Fee Basis?

Rather than paying a lawyer upfront (with money or a leg), a personal injury lawyer can offer you a contingency fee agreement.

A contingency fee agreement means that the lawyer only gets paid a percentage of what he or she recovers for you and only after it is recovered. Generally, that percentage is one-third (33%) of cases that settle, and up to 40% of cases that go to court. That means:

  1. There is no fee if there is no recovery – why should a lawyer get paid if they lose your case?
  2. There are no upfront fees – some negligent person hurt you, so why should you have to pay out more money to get compensation for medical bills and lost wages?
  3. There are no out-of-pocket fees – since the legal fees are based on a percentage of your recovery, that means the proceeds of your case pay the lawyer’s fees, and there is no need to shake out your purse for coins to pay us.

Advantages of a Contingency Fee Agreement

A contingency fee agreement is wonderful for victims of a personal injury accident for several reasons. The most obvious is that a contingency fee agreement places the risk of a lawsuit not on the client (like in a contract dispute) but on the lawyer.

Meaning, in other types of cases, if the lawyer loses, the lawyer still gets paid (you just lose twice—the money and the case). But in a personal injury case with a contingency fee agreement, the interests of the client and the lawyer are aligned, making it a mutual win-win situation.

Another advantage of this is that the lawyer will want to push your case forward as fast as possible. Unlike some other types of cases and lawyers, where there may be the incentive to “milk the file” to vacuum up all of a client’s money, that does not work in a personal injury action because the lawyer only gets paid at the end—and based on what he or she recovers for you. That means if the personal injury lawyer spent 10 hours or 1,010 hours on your case, the amount they get paid is the same. It also encourages the lawyer to get the highest recovery possible, as the old saying goes—the rising tide floats all boats.

What About Costs and Disbursements of a Lawsuit?

Sometimes (believe it or not), the lawyer may not even be the most expensive part of a personal injury lawsuit—the costs and disbursements are! This is particularly true in extreme injury cases resulting in catastrophic harm, disability, brain injuries, or other permanent harm. In these types of cases, litigation can be expensive, and the medical liens that must be satisfied can be more than the available insurance. That is where we shine. Even when the medical bills are more than the insurance coverage, in most cases we are able to put a lot of money in our client’s pocket.

Cost and disbursements are any expenses in a lawsuit that are related to filing and commencing the action, as well as prosecuting the claim. This includes expenses such as the following:

  • Court filing fees
  • Process server bills
  • Medical record expenses
  • FOIL/FOIA expenses, including obtaining police reports and accident reconstructions
  • Postage
  • Printing and paper fees
  • Medical expert fees or liability expert fees
  • Stenographer fees for depositions/examinations before trial (EBTs)
  • Motion fees
  • Jury trial fees, including copying and exhibit prep, and
  • Other common costs that are associated with bringing a lawsuit against the evil empire.

Who Pays the Costs and Disbursements of a Lawsuit?

Costs and disbursements are typically paid for upfront by the lawyer and reimbursed at the conclusion of the case.

While some personal injury lawyers and other law firms may charge clients for cost and disbursements no matter the outcome (boo!), our experienced personal injury lawyer in Greenville, SC will only seek reimbursement for costs and disbursements after a recovery is made. Meaning if there is no win, there is no fee for our legal fees or for the costs and disbursements. In addition, unlike some lawyers, we never take more in fees than our clients take home!

This is why it is important to hire an experienced personal injury lawyer like the Hammack Law Firm to represent you.

Hurt in a Personal Injury Accident in South Carolina? Let Our Lawyers Help You

If you or a loved one were seriously injured, or if a loved one was wrongfully killed in a personal injury accident in South Carolina, schedule a FREE consultation with one of our personal injury lawyers in Greenville, SC. We’re ready to help you and your family!

Questions or Schedule An Appointment? Call Us:

(864) 326-3333

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